Samsung Galaxy Note II is the company’s second phone/tablet hybrid device and the successor of the highly popular Galaxy Note. This device was announced and showcased last month at IFA 2012 event in Berlin. Samsung Galaxy Note II comes with a 5.5 inch Super AMOLED HD display and a 1.6 GHz quad-core processor. It is the manufacturer’s first device to run on the latest Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean) Operating System.

After launching this device in its home country, Samsung went ahead and launched this powerful phablet in India. Currently, Samsung is selling the 16 GB variant of Galaxy Note II in India. The price is this device is similar to the 32 GB variant of company’s flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S III. If you are not familiar with the features of this device, then check out the complete specs below.

Mr B D Park, President & CEO, South West Asia, Samsung Electronics, said: “The Galaxy Note II offers creative possibilities and opens up productivity to everybody. It’s easy and fun to use and allows users to express themselves with almost no boundaries. By delivering a complete mobile experience for creating content and by introducing new products and continuous enhancements to the Note category of devices, Samsung provides a unique user experience that goes beyond passive content consumption to a new world of productivity, active creation and personalized communications.”

Samsung Galaxy Note II comes with the new Air View feature that allows you to hover with the S-Pen over an email, image gallery or video to preview the content without having to open it. This device is currently available in Marble White and Titanium Gray color. Samsung Galaxy Note II comes with a price tag of Rs.39,900 (approx. $760) in India.

Back in June, Sony unveiled the entry-level Xperia Tipo and Xperia Tipo Dual smartphones. As the name suggest, Xperia Tipo is a single SIM variant, while the Xperia Tipo Dual is a dual-SIM variant and the company’s first dual-SIM smartphone. Apart from that, there are no major difference in the specs of these devices. It comes with a 3.2 inch display, 800 MHz processor, 3.2 megapixel camera and more. These handsets run on the Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) Operating System.

After waiting for nearly 3 months, Sony finally launched the Xperia Tipo and Xperia Tipo dual smartphones in India. The handsets are bundled up with pre-loaded apps such as Bollywood Hungama, Dainik Jagran, appXtra and Cricbuzz. If you are planning to buy one, then check out the complete specs below.

Kenichiro Hibi, Managing Director, Sony India said: “With the Xperia brand, our aim has always been to innovate ahead of consumer demand. After the launch of Xperia NXT series earlier this year, we are now launching the phone that will reach out to entire India. We have expanded our Xperia range with Tipo – Sony’s first entry level price category smartphone under Xperia brand.”

It also comes with a 3.5 mm audio jack, FM radio with RDS, GPS with aGPS, Bluetooth 2.1 with A2DP, USB 2.0, Google Play Store, Wi-Fi Hotspot functionality, 3 GB internal memory, MicroSD card slot, 32 GB expandable memory, up to 30 hrs music playback time, up to 5 hrs of talk-time, up to 470 hrs of stand-by time and a 1500 mAh battery.

Sony Xperia Tipo is currently available for Rs.9,999, while the dual-SIM variant comes with a price-tag of Rs.10,499 in India. Vodafone subscribers will get 500 MB of free 3G data for three months, with the purchase of this smartphone.

Back in July, Samsung announced the entry-level Galaxy Chat smartphone. The specs of this device is nothing extra-ordinary, however it comes with a touchscreen display and a unique form-factor similar to the previously launched Samsung Galaxy Y Pro Duos and HTC ChaCha. Samsung Galaxy Chat runs on the Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) OS. Sadly, this device is not expected to get the Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean) update and you might get stuck forever with the ICS.

Samsung Galaxy Chat comes with a dedicated Samsung ChatOn key which allows you to share text, animations and images with your friends. Samsung has not yet officially launched this device in India, however popular online retailers such as Saholic and Infibeam has already started selling this device in India. Mahesh Telecom, a popular retailer in Mumbai is also selling this affordable smartphone in India.

Other features include a 3.5 mm headset jack, FM Radio with RDS, 4 GB internal memory, MicroSD card slot, 32 GB expandable memory, Bluetooth 3.0, USB 2.0, Google Play Store, GPS with A-GPS, up to 520 hours of stand-by time, up to 15 hours of talk-time and a 1200 mAh battery.

Samsung Galaxy Chat is pre-loaded with the Samsung’s AllShare Play and S Planner app which allows you to play multimedia from other connected devices and manage your schedule respectively. This handset comes with a price-tag of Rs.8500 in India. To get this handset, head over to Saholic or Infibeam.

Earlier this year, Nokia tried to re-enter the smartphone market with the Nokia Lumia 900. This handset was exclusively launched for the AT&T subscribers in the US. Nokia Lumia 900 is the upgraded version of the not-so-popular Nokia Lumia 800 with a slightly large display and a better battery backup. This device is already available in the US from the last 5 months. Nokia fanboys in India were not sure if the Finnish manufacturer will ever launch this device in their country.

Today, Nokia has finally fulfilled their wish by releasing the Nokia Lumia 900 in India. It is the first Nokia’s Windows Phone powered device to feature the high-speed LTE connectivity. The Nokia Lumia 900 runs on the Windows Phone 7.5 (Mango) Operating System. We already know that Microsoft will not upgrade the last generation Windows Phone devices to the Windows Phone 8 OS. However, the Nokia Lumia 900 will at least get some of the features via Windows Phone 7.8 update.

Currently, there is no point in buying this handset when Nokia has already announced the next generation Windows Phone powered devices at the Nokia World 2012. I have no idea what nokia was thinking before launching this smartphone in India. I’m quite sure that Nokia fanboys will disagree with me. If you are one of those, then just grab this link and get the Nokia Lumia 900 from the Nokia Store for Rs.32,999.

Back in April, Micromax launched the company’s first tablet device, the Micromax Funbook. This 7 inch tablet was powered by the Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) Operating System and it runs on the 1.2 Ghz Cortex A8 processor. After the huge success of this device, Micromax launched another Android 4.0 powered tablet in August. The Micromax Funbook Pro packed a large 10.1 inch display and a 1.2 GHz processor.

Now, Micromax went ahead and launched the third tablet in the Funbook family, the Micromax Funbook Alpha. This device is touted to be the stripped down version of the original Funbook. It runs on the old Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) OS and the much-awaited Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean) update seems unlikely for this device. Check out the complete specs below.

It comes with the usual E-learning app which offers reading materials, videos, multimedia, tests, assessment, references from leading content brands. Micromax Funbook Alpha comes with a price-tag of Rs.6,499. However, you can easily get this device from nCarry for just Rs.5,999.

Intex recently launched the Android powered Aqua 4.0 smartphone in India. It is basically an entry-level smartphone with dual-SIM functionality. Intex Aqua 4.0 will be shipped with the old Android 2.3.5 (Gingerbread) Operating System and it won’t be upgraded to the Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) OS. This handset is specially designed for students and young professionals, who are planning to upgrade from their feature phone to an entry-level smartphone without burning a hole in their pocket.

Sanjay Kumar, GM- Mobile Business, Intex Technologies (India) Ltd, said: “We have been in the mobile business from the last five years and hence offering smartphones is a natural progression in growing our product portfolio in the country. While smartphones are mostly used by urban population, our market survey has established the huge demand in smaller cities and towns. We at Intex are geared up to offer best of the smartphones. AQUA 4.0 is one such offering which has a host of bundled applications and features that make it an ideal choice at a pocket-friendly price for youngsters.”

Intex Aqua comes pre-loaded with popular games such as Angry Birds, Talking Tom, Fruit Ninja, etc. This device is available in Black and White colors. Intex Aqua 4.0 comes with a price-tag of just Rs.5,490 (approx. $100) in India. You can easily get this device from your nearest retailers as well as from 70 Intex Squares across India.

MTS recently launched 3 new entry-level CDMA smartphones in India, the MTag 351, MTag 352 And MTag 281. These devices run on the old Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) Operating System and come bundled with unlimited data plans. The pre-loaded MTS TV application allows you to access Live TV with more than 100 channels. You can also access more than 450,000 apps and games from the Google Play Store.

Leonid Musatov, Chief Marketing & Sales Officer, MTS India, said: “With the launch of these three Smartphones, we have now brought four new Android Smartphones in less than two months. MTS now offers a comprehensive range of Android Smartphones for discerning, on the move, tech savvy youth. MTS MTag 351, MTS MTag 352 and MTS MTag 281 are powered by best in class Qualcomm Snapdragon S1 Processor, running on Android 2.3 Gingerbread platform and come bundled with unlimited ‘All You Can Use’ High Speed Data plans and local MTS to MTS Calls.”

MTS MTag 351, MTag 352 and MTag 281 comes with a price tag of Rs.7499, Rs.6499 and Rs.5499 respectively. MTag 351 and MTag 352 owners will get unlimited local MTS to MTS calls for 3 months, while the MTag 281 owners will get the benefit of calling all local numbers at 1p/2sec for 3 months.

Last year, Vodafone launched the Vodafone Delights for its prepaid and postpaid subscribers in India. Vodafone Delights offers deals, special discount, birthday surprise and happy hours to its customers. Today, the wireless carrier joined hands with Big Cinemas and announced the new Birthday Surpise initiative to make its customers feel special.

Previously, the company offered birthday gift in form of telecom offerings, just by visiting any Vodafone Store on your birthday. However, the new initiative will let you watch any of the latest movie for free at select Big Cinemas across India. You heard it right! Just visit the Big Cinemas multiplex on your birthday and get a free ticket to watch the movie as well as a greeting card by Vodafone.

Additionally, select BIG Cinemas in Mumbai and Ahmedabad, will present the Vodafone birthday customer with a birthday cake. Apart from that, Vodafone will put up a slide on the screen with the customer’s name, while playing the birthday jingle in the background during the intermission.

Brajesh Bajpai, Business Head, Vodafone Gujarat, said: “At Vodafone making every customer feel special is second nature and it is one of the key factors driving every thing we do. Birthdays are special to all and we wanted to contribute to the celebratory moments with a generous dose of ‘feel special’ elements, without being intrusive. We are happy that BIG Cinemas has partnered with us to make birthdays extra beautiful for Vodafone customers.”

The Vodafone Birthday Surprise initiative will be implemented across 41 cities, 55 multiplexes and 162 screens. It is expected to reach approximately 60000 cinema viewers each day. This offer is valid only till Aug 26, 2012. The complete list of Big Cinemas offering Vodafone Delights are posted below.

Back in January, Sony unveiled the Xperia Ion smartphone at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2012 in Las Vegas. This handset is already available for the customers in the US from the last 2 months. However, the folks living in India were left behind. Snapdeal, a popular online retailer in India is already selling this device from the last few days. Today, Sony finally launched the powerful Xperia Ion in India.

Sony Xperia Ion is the company’s first dual-core smartphone featuring a 4.6 inch HD reality display and a 12 megapixel camera. This handset originally runs on old Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) Operating System. However, Xperia Ion will be shipped with the newer Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) OS in India.

Prasun Kumar, Marketing Head, Sony Mobile Communications, said: “With Xperia ion, we’re bringing together a seamless experience across the multiple screens that we use to play, watch, listen, and share. Xperia ion is the gateway to HD entertainment when and – most importantly – where you want it. We are glad to see overwhelming customer response for our Xperia range and we thank them for supporting us unconditionally on this successful journey in India. We strongly believe that the consumer will like the Xperia ion’s HD entertainment experience which has exclusive Airtel data offer to enhance the smartphone experience.”

It also comes with a 3.5 mm audio jack, FM radio with RDS, GPS with aGPS, Bluetooth technology, DLNA Certified, HDMI support, Micro USB, NFC (Near Field Communication), USB 2.0, Google Play Store, Wi-Fi Hotspot functionality, 16 GB internal memory, MicroSD card slot, 32 GB expandable memory, up to 18 hrs music playback time, up to 6 hrs 30 min video playback time, up to 6 hrs 45 min of talk-time, up to 850 hrs of stand-by time and a 1750 mAh battery.

Sony Xperia Ion comes with a price tag of Rs.36,999 (approx. $670). This handset is available in Black and Red colors. Airtel subscribers will get 500 MB of free 3G data per month for 3 months as well as 200 minutes of Mobile TV for 2 months, with the purchase of this smartphone.

Back in July, Nokia announced two new budget smartphones in its popular Asha family. The Nokia Asha 305 features a 3 inch touchscreen display along with the Easy Swap dual SIM technology. On the other hand, Nokia Asha 311 is the company’s cheapest touchscreen phone with 1 GHz processor. Both the handsets run on the Symbian S40 Operating System. These devices are pre-loaded with 15 levels of Angry Birds as well as the Nokia Browser 2.0, which uses Nokia’s cloud technology to reduce data consumption by up to 90%.

Mr. Viral Oza, Director Marketing, Nokia India, said, “The Nokia Asha family has received tremendous consumer response. With a variety of form factors across price points and innovations such as Nokia Browser, Nokia Maps and DRM free Nokia Music, Nokia Asha family has triggered data consumption habits in first time data users. With the launch of Nokia Asha Touch range, we are strengthening our range of ‘mobile internet’ devices that offer these exciting experiences to the consumers.”

Nokia Asha 305 and Asha 311 allow you to stay in touch with your friends and family with email and chat on the most popular instant messaging services such as Twitter and Facebook. The Nokia Asha 305 comes with a price tag of just Rs.5,029, while the Nokia Asha 311 is available for Rs.7,139 in India.